The Fiance
by The
Summary: What happens when a figure from Mal's past joins the crew of Serenity
1. Discovery

A/N: Most of the characters in this story belong Mutant Enemy and the genius Joss Whedon.  I took a little poetic license in creating a background for Mal, although I would love to be proved wrong in the case that UPN picks up the show.  Enjoy.  Reviews are always welcome.  

                                                            The fiancé

            Simon, Zoë, Wash, and Kaylee were sitting around the table in the mess, talking and basically just passing the time after dinner.  Jayne had wandered off in search of something more interesting to do.  Inara had turned in for the night, claiming that she had some researching to do on her newest client that she was supposed to be meeting on the planet that they were heading towards currently.  Mal had left for the night as well; to make sure everything was in order before heading to bed.   Shepard Book and River had also retired for the evening. 

"I have a question …" Simon ventured, unsure as to whether or not he should ask the trivial question that had been nagging him recently.

"Shoot." Wash encouraged.

"I've noticed that the Captain doesn't particularly like being called by his full first name, I was wondering if any of you knew why." Simon asked.  Wash and Kalyee just shrugged and mumbled that they didn't know, but Zoë went silent as if thinking on whether or not to reveal the answer.  Sensing that she knew the motivation behind this, everyone in the room turned toward her, expecting an answer. 

"Well, probably because his fiancé used to call him 'Malcolm', and likely dredges up bad memories."  She finally answered.

"Why what happened to her?"  Kaylee pressed.  

Before answering, Zoë look out the door to make sure that the Captain wasn't in hearing distance.  "All I know is that her ship was captured by the alliance and she as well as the rest of the crew were pronounced dead.  I was there when he got the letter, took it real hard, harder than I ever seen him take somethin'.  Other than that I don't know anymore."

An awkward silence filled the room for an antagonistically long few minutes until Wash rose from his chair announcing that he was going to bed.  Following her husbands lead Zoë too rose to leave.  Simon and Kaylee sat in silence for an indeterminable amount of time.  "Well… I never knew he wa' ever that serious about a lady.  I mean he never really seem to be interested in them, except for in passing reference or looks."  Kaylee finally broke the tension.

"That would explain why.  So, … how are the engines running …" Simon responded, changing the subject wishing he had never brought it up in the first place.

**Many Years Ago**

"You promise you don't mind me goin' on this mission?" Edeline asked, as she was standing in front of the catwalk that led to her new ship.  She and Mal had been dating for over two years, and they had been planning on getting married in 3 months, but the war had finally broke out, postponing the wedding.  Both of them had believed passionately in the independent's cause and had both enlisted their services.  Unfortunately having very unique talents, each of them were sure to get separated.  Edeline was a phenomenal engineer and was therefore assigned to a ship, where as Mal being a natural leader of men, had been assigned to infantry.  They were now parting, as she was about to go on a long mission, to try and survey the border planets near the front.  Although they both knew that their missions were very dangerous, Malcolm never suspected that it was the last time he would ever see her again. 

Edeline had felt horrible not joining the Independent's intelligence corps where she would have been nearer to the infantry division, not to mention out of direct danger, but the fleet needed engineers and mechanics desperately to keep the ships flying and battle-worthy.

Mal would be shipping off to Hera soon, yet she did not want to be the first to leave.  "I'm sure … You're needed on the _Anderson_.  We'll see each other soon, and I promise to write."  He said, trying to reassure himself more than her.  They leaned towards each other to capture one last embrace.  As their lips brushed against one another, their kiss deepened, driven by a need that neither knew they felt.  They broke and stared into each other's eyes for what seemed like an eternity, before Edeline whispered an inaudible goodbye and turned toward the docking port and walked onto the ship never to be seen by Malcolm Reynolds again.

A few months later he would receive a letter from her mother breaking the news that the _Anderson_ had been captured and all on board had been killed.

**Present**

Mal awoke in a cold sweat, just having relived some of the worst times of his life.  He breathed deeply as he looked around at the comforting scenery of his bunk.  "Captain, were comin' up on the planet." Wash's voice came over the comm. as Mal was getting dressed.  He quickly finished up and headed towards the bridge.

"We're comin' up on the planet, sir, should be landin' as soon as my Husband here, gets permission from ground control."  Zoë said as Mal walked through the door.

"Sounds good to me.  I take it you already contacted them considerin' you seem to be waitin' on that permission."

"Yep, all we need is the a-okay" Wash responded.

Mal then headed down to the engine room to let Kaylee know that they'd be landing soon and to get a list of the new parts that they needed.

By the time they touched down, everyone but Wash, who was planning on staying on the ship, was gathered in the cargo bay.  Mal had already given out an advance on their monthly wages, and everyone was ready to go.

As soon as they opened the door, the crew ventured out on their separate paths.  Jayne, the first to disappear, headed for the nearest bar.  Inara and Kaylee headed towards the general store, along with Zoë, who had finally agreed to spend a girl's night out, a rare occasion since she had married Wash.  They were going to go by the general store, then stop by the parts store, and finally head to a local bar and eatery.  The Captain, as usual, went out in search of cargo for _Serenity_, hoping to tap into some old contacts.  Simon and River went directly to the medical supply store, got what he needed and headed back, cautious not to be recognized.

"I can't believe I let myself get talked into this" Zoë said as the searched for 3 open seats in the packed room.  They ended up finding one next to a woman with what looked like an independent engineer's coat on (it was an ex-independent friendly planet).

"I still can't believe we talked you into it."  Kaylee shouted gleefully.    

They sat down and ordered.  Kaylee struck up a conversation with woman next to her.  "… So you're an engineer?" she asked.

"Yeah,  bout the only thing I got left from the war."

"You look like you just got out of it, like you haven't eaten for weeks."

"I just escaped from an alliance camp about 4 months ago."

"But I thought they released everyone."

"They released everyone that was "alive"."

At this Kaylee look rather befuddled.  Zoë joined the conversation to explain, "What she means is, the alliance had a tendency to publish that captures were killed and then torture them in camps, and never even admit that they existed.  I'd heard rumors about there still bein' camps, but I never actually met anyone that was in one.  What ship were you on?"

"The _Anderson_, I'm Edeline …"

 "Zoë."

"Nice to meet you, I take it you were in the war?"

"Battle of Serenity" At this they both shared a moment of silence.

"Zoë, Ede here is looking for a ride to somewhere, she's willin' to pay and work in the engine room.  You think Cap'n would be willin' to let her onboard? It'd be great to have a real engineer in there to help; maybe we could spruce Serenity up a bit."

"Well I don't see why not.  Why don't come back to the ship, and you can talk to Captain Reynolds about it." Zoë said in reply.

"Thank you." _It can't be the same man, he's dead, I saw it with my own eyes.  Maybe they faked the tape!  What if he really is alive? I shouldn't get my hopes up, but I can't help but want to ask._ Edeline thought to herself.  "I know this is a long shot, is that Malcolm Reynolds from Shadow, fought at the battle of Serenity?"   

 "Yes, you know him?"

"Know him, I almost married him."  And with that single sentence, Zoë jaw literally dropped.  She quickly collected herself and pulled out her radio.

"Sir, you might want to high tail it over to the ship, I got someone you are definitely gonna want meet again."

"Zoë, I'm kinda in the middle of findin' us some cargo, so unless that person is about to pay us money then they can wait." Mal said on the other end as he made a placting face to the rather menacing men who were waiting to conclude their dealings with something that would not even come close to patience.

"Malcolm, I am more than willing to pay whatever your passenger rate is." Edeline took the radio from her.

"Edy?…" Malcolm whispered. 


	2. Reunion

 SEQ CHAPTER \h \r 1A/N: Most of the characters in this story belong to Mutant Enemy and the genius Joss Whedon.  I took a little poetic license in creating a background for Mal, although I would love to be proved wrong.  Enjoy. Reviews are always welcome.  ****

PS – this occurs shortly after War Stories and Objects in Space****

 ****

Mal literally stared at the radio for a few seconds, before managing to collect himself enough to finish up his dealings and get back to the ship.  "Gentleman, it was a pleasure doin' business with you, but if you excuse me I really must go."  He said and was out the door before they even had a chance to reply.  He didn't know whether to be overjoyed about seeing his long lost love, or to be nervous about seeing her after so much had passed. All he knew was that he wanted to be back on Serenity as soon as possible and he did just that.  He even managed to beat the girls back to the ship.****

Wash had just walked into the cargo bay, when he saw the Captain run up the ramp. "What's the matter Captain? Should I be preppin' for launch or something, cause I was just about to go have a drink?"

"No, don't worry.  Are the girls back yet!"  Mal said, sounding more urgent than he had meant to.

"Noooo, are they supposed to be?"  Wash said a bit confused.

Mal just ignored his question, and started pacing.  Wash was just about to prompt the captain about what was going on, when Zoë came up the ramp, flanked by Inara and Kaylee.  Edy was walking behind the front three.

Zoë nodded to the captain and said, "Have a good evening Captain."  She then grabbed Wash's arm and the four of them continued on into the common room to give the two some room.  Once they reached their destination, Wash voiced the questions that had been nagging him ever since being drug out of the cargo bay. "Who was that? Why did we all just leave? And, I thought you were supposed to be out painting the town, not bringing strange women back to the ship."

"That was the captain's fiancée" was all Zoë had to say. 

"Oh, well I guess I'll just stay here then.  I was just about to go for a drink you know."

"That's nice …" Zoë said, wondering what the captain's reaction to Edeline was.

**In the Cargo Bay**

Mal and Edeline stared at each other for several minutes, just taking in each other. Often times in prison, her image of Mal had been the only thing keeping Edeline going.  The thought that they might see each other again was enough to give her hope.  Later on, one of the guards had overheard her in her sleep, and had told his superiors that she had been engaged to a sergeant in the infantry.  The next day they had showed her a tape of Malcolm being shot in the head after surrendering at the battle of Serenity.  For weeks she had, simply not believed it, she kept thinking to herself _He would never surrender like that, he rather die trying._ After a few months she came to accept his death, and instead of clinging to the futile hope that they would be reunited, she tried to survive so that he had not died in vain.  And now, here he stood, before her very eyes.  All be it, he looked much older and much more worn, but it was really him.  Gone was the boyish enthusiam with which he had faced every new challenge, replaced instead by a knowledge of the harsh 'verse.  He still had the same glint in his eyes, but it shared the space with an immense sorrow and tiredness.   He had grown and changed since she last saw him, but she was sure she had too.  She also noticed that he was moving rather stiffly, as if in pain, and was walking with a slight limp.

Mal, too, was drowning in his own thoughts and memories.  His last memory of her was as she kissed him right before leaving. Three months later, he was sitting in a foxhole, rejoicing after a small victory.  Spirits are high, the men had food, and there was a temporary break in the bombardment.  They had even got some mail through.  It was then that he received a letter from Edeline's, mother the_ Anderson_ had been captured and that the Alliance *@#$ (something along the lines of bastards) had killed everyone on board.  His world had come crumbling down around him.  His legs wouldn't hold him any longer, he was forced to sit down and just stare into the space in front of him.  Zoë had come over and tried to comfort him, but it was useless.  That day he had vowed to never give up the fight against the alliance, whether it be in the form of a formal war, or just quiet defiance.  Now she was standing right in front of him clearly alive and breathing.  She had changed a lot in the seven years they had been apart, but it was still her.  She looked older and worn.  She was now gaunt and stiff, her eyes were tired; but he could still see a ghost of her former self in the smile that was forming on her lips as she realized it was really him.  Even though it looked like she had been drug from one end of the galaxy to the other she was still beautiful in Mal's eyes.  "Edy" he uttered, still in shock from seeing her again, " its really you? You're alive."

"Oh, Malcolm, they told me you were dead." Edy finally breathed.

"I was just goin' to say the same thing."

Edy finally gave into the overwhelming urge to make contact.  A part of her just wanted to make sure that he was really there.  She flung her arms around his neck and just stood there for a few minutes.  "Its been so long, Mal, its been so very long.  We don't even know each other any more."  She said still clinging to him.

He simply kissed her on the forehead, saying "We have al the time in the 'verse to get reacquainted"

He winced s she pressed against his sore chest.  As she pulled away he gave a short laugh and said , "Aren't we a lovely pair, I can barely move and you look like you haven't eaten for weeks." 

"Yeah"

"Come on, let's go get something to eat."

**Common Room**

"Everyone, I'd like y'all to meet our newest passenger, Edeline Störrisherengel" Mal said as they walked into the common room.

"Edy, you've already met the girls, and this is Wash, Zoë's husband.  In the corner is Doctor Simon Tam and his sister River, and the preacher is Shepard Book.  I fear we might have to go collect Jayne with the mule, but otherwise this is my crew."  Mal said as he introduced everyone.

  



End file.
